


Locked in Place

by old_shizuumi151 (shizuumi151)



Category: Free!
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-25
Updated: 2014-12-25
Packaged: 2018-03-03 10:13:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,552
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2847344
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shizuumi151/pseuds/old_shizuumi151
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Haru waits for his boyfriend at the Tokyo airport with a plan in mind.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Locked in Place

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Sawi](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sawi/gifts).



Gentle washes of warm oranges and lilacs spilt onto the cream marble floor, and Haru found himself blinking up at the harsh lights tiling the high arched ceiling of the airport. Passengers streamed beside and weaved around him. The murmur of expensive shoes and scuffed sneakers clacking and squeaking on the hard floor dulled in the back of his mind, and he closed his eyes to drown out his senses more; to focus on the cool air of the airport gently rushing into his nose, and leaving in a soft, warmer exhale.

His eyelids fluttered open, and his neck slowly fell to look ahead again. His eyes were a clear blue, studying.

It was winter, warmer inside the chilled airport than out. Haru still wore his anorak, his gloved hands and cold chin buried deep in thick fabric. He still felt cold, but when his gaze flickered to the monitors of arriving passengers bundled in scarves and coats, pulling along squealing children or obedient luggage — looking for that shade of maroon — his cheeks blossomed with warmth.

How else could he react when he was looking for his boyfriend?

But it was nothing compared to the actual rush, compared to Rin’s actual arrival — when he rushed past the monitor and came out of the passage for real — how seeing those fiery, warm red eyes in the flesh made his heart actually bound.

“Haru!”

His voice wasn’t loud, but was infinitely richer than what Rin’s microphone could manage on Skype. It still rung in Haru’s ears, still made the response stall thick in his throat, before he finally, quietly responded.

“Rin.”

True to form, Rin smiled brightly, blindingly at the sound of his name. Haru’s heart hammered in his chest, resounding throughout his stock-still body as he watched Rin nearly forget that he had  to snake around a waist-high partition in order to greet Haru civilly.

“Yo!” Rin called before he was even a metre away, boots clopping and wheels spinning with fervour as he was approaching. “S’been a while, huh?”

He settled in front of Haru, his breathing audible — a little rushed from excitement. And he looked vivid, glowing. Despite the nerves pumping through his body, Haru found that he couldn’t peel his eyes away from Rin’s warm expression and long, soft hair.

“ _Still_ with the poker-face front?” Rin asked in a rough, but affectionate sigh. He pushed his bottom lip out, crumbling the aforementioned front. “C’mon, Haru, aren’t you even excited to see— _mf_!?”

Haru took a breath before he opened his eyes, and registered that it was his shoulder muffling Rin’s voice. His fingers laced through the maroon hair at the back of Rin’s head, the fine strands making up the locks were palpable even through his obstructing gloves. Haru felt a brush at the side of his neck, and intuitively knew it was Rin’s hair teasing his nape. With Rin so close, his tiny, choked splutters were less sound and more vibration, all overreactions so tactile and present that it warmed Haru to the core.

“H- _Haru_ …” Rin exhaled his name in sheer surprise, and promptly started to trip over his words. Haru already knew that his cheeks were probably turning a lovely red, and Haru hadn’t found him so adorable since he clapped his hands over his face on a video call over a drawing. “What’re you—we’re in _public_ —”

“I missed you,” Haru admitted softly. He tucked Rin’s soft locks into his fist, only partly disguising his fascination as longing, and slowly drew in the scent of fading cologne at the column of Rin’s neck. “I missed you, Rin.”

There was a pause in the stream of people, the bustle of the airport, as he felt drowsy in Rin’s soothing being.

Then a hand tentatively slid over his back. His chest flared with warmth as Rin gradually returned his hug, his grip growing tighter with confidence.

“…Yeah,” Rin sighed, and the honeying effect of his steam-like breath melts Haru’s composure even further. “I missed you too.”

Haru heard him laugh and sniffle, but didn’t quip on how Rin was (likely) tearing up as they embraced.

He opened his eyes a touch, realising that a ways away was a small, young boy, backpacked and similarly bundled, blinking at them curiously beneath a woollen beanie. When he then realised an imposing woman shooting him and Rin a glare before dragging the ever-wondering child off. In the aftermath, a strange surge of self-consciousness and aplomb rose within him.

He pulled back to place his lips by Rin’s ear, and noted how the delicate, intimate action made Rin stiffen.

“…Let’s go back to my apartment.”

“ _Shit_ ,” Rin hissed, voice cracking at the end of his whisper. He pulled away completely and regained the handle on his bag and good sense, his face indeed in full flush now that Haru could see it. “Christ, almost forgot how goddamn bold you are.”

Haru tucked his hands in his pockets and followed Rin’s stalking figure without hesitation. “You’re staying with me anyway.”

“Well, _yeah_ , but,” Rin swallowed, nervously pushing back his hair. He let it spill over his face again, in such a naturally alluring way that trapped Haru. “Damn, made me feel like you were picking me up at a bar late at night or something, y’know?”

Haru adjusted his pace to walk alongside. “…Though I do want to do something with you when we get back. Will you let me—?”

“ _So, Haru!_ ” Rin squawked, clapping Haru’s shoulder with much more force than necessary. “How’s training been? Good?!”

“Rin, my shoulder—”

Rin’s sudden bout of laughter invited a few stares, and left Haru fondly smiling.

* * *

They navigated to the nearest Starbucks to exit the airport with steaming coffee. Haru listened intently to the countless anecdotes that Rin retold with a flair that was clearly yet endearingly rehearsed, and they manage to finish their cups before they board the metro heading towards Haru’s apartment.

Rin’s breath wafted of mint and coffee, his clothes of a zesty but faint cologne. The scent kept Haru awake from the soporific glow of the sunset blinking past buildings running by the train window.

Resting against the hard metal seat, Haru thought of dozing off to the sound of Rin’s voice, Rin’s scent — the shuddering train on tracks heading for home as Rin at his side warmed him.

Then he felt a weight on his shoulder, and all thoughts of disconnect popped like bubbles in summer light.

“…What happened to being in public?”

“Idiot,” Rin muttered to his whisper, pressing closer against Haru’s side so they made a ball of maroon and navy in the empty silver compartment. “There’s no one here…”

Haru didn’t clarify that he was teasing as he craned his neck, his lips grazing Rin’s scalp. Rin’s cheek pressed against the coat on his shoulder, and Rin’s hair tickled the sides of his face. His senses soaked in Rin’s lingering cherry blossom shampoo, and his heart went fuzzy with Rin’s tiny nuzzling.

His hand caught on Rin’s, and the familiar giddiness softened any remaining tension. He intertwined their fingers with a firmer grip before tucking their hands into his wide jacket pocket, and the inner pride secretly dancing within his chest remained hidden.

They stayed like that for a long part of the ride. Haru planted a kiss at Rin’s crown, his chapped lips relishing the softness of Rin’s locks. After another kiss, Rin fidgeted more at his side.

“Dammit,” Rin cursed under his breath, legs wrapping tighter around the luggage at his feet. “I missed you a _lot_.”

“You already cried at the airport.”

“One, I did _not_ cry; Two, I’m talking about—” Rin clammed up, gulping to whisper. “I’m talking about in _that_ way…”

Haru blinked in a settling realisation, an instant before Rin helplessly leaned more of his weight onto his shoulder.

“…Oh.”

Rin scoffed. “Yeah, _oh_.” He rubbed his nose into Haru’s shoulder like a attention-seeking pet, making Haru squirm. “Get a clue, _dum-my_.”

“Rin,” Haru chided quietly, his cheeks reddening. “You’re embarrassing.”

“That’s for your smooth-talking at the airport.”

“I wasn’t smooth-talking—”

“Yeah, yeah, and I didn’t hint at wanting to bone you when we get to your place.”

Haru’s face flared. “ _Rin_ —”

“Man, it’s still fun rilin’ you up,” Rin sighed in content before standing, and Haru registered that, with the absence of Rin’s warmth, they’d arrived at their station. “Thought I’d lost my touch, honestly.”

“Not fair.” Haru pouted. Rin turned back to notice, and only grinned.

“Hey, _you’re_ the one who wants to do somethin’ when we get back. What healthy guy wouldn’t get excited?”

“I get it, I get it,” Haru pushed a small breath through his nose, brushing past the metal pole and Rin to disembark. “We should hurry up then, right?”

“Well, yeah, but— _CRAP,_ MY BAG!”

“Hm?” Haru turned back to the sound of rushed footsteps and closing train doors.

“Gah… _shit_ ,” Rin put the back of his hand to his forehead, wiping with exaggerated relief. “That was close.”

“… _Pft_.”

“OI!” Rin yelled while Haru hid his face, his frame gently shaking with laughter. “N-Not that I dislike your laugh, or anything— _but don’t laugh at **me**_!”

“But you’re funny.” Haru smiled through his laughter, still continuing on home.

Rin gulped before following suit. “S- _Still_ …!”

* * *

As soon as they’d reached the apartment, Haru briefly pressed his lips against Rin’s.

“Really?” Rin asked through a sly grin, glancing at Haru’s lips an inch away. “Not even gonna show me around first?”

“It’s a ‘welcome back’ kiss,” Haru explained, deadpan before kissing him again.

“O-Oh,” Rin responded smartly, a weak cough crawling up his throat. “Whassat one for then?”

“‘I missed you’ kiss.”

“Huh,” Rin nodded slowly, face heating. “Guess you were waiting to plant that one, then…” he murmured, before his eyes widened at another soft peck at his cheek.

Haru blinked at Rin’s curious gaze, before looking aside. “That…That one was…”

His brow furrowed at thinking up a viable reason, and Rin let out a carefree laugh.

“Jeez, y’don’t need to announce every reason why you kiss me, or anything,” he chuckled, before looping his arms around Haru’s back. “I’m your boy…friend, after all.”

“Why did you pause?”

“That’s—uh—I usually don’t say it, like, outright, with you _here_ , instead of across a camera—”

“What’s with that hesitation…”

“H-Hey, don’t get disappointed, I’m just—!” Rin’s words went garbled, his small panic rising at Haru’s kicked-puppy face. “I get _nervous_ , that’s all!”

“Then say it properly.”

“I’m your boyfriend.”

There was a pause after Rin’s immediate response. Haru brought his hand up to thumb Rin’s cheeks growing red. “Amazing.”

“Hey,” Rin whined, feeling more humiliated than rewarded for his resolve. “Cut that out!”

“Say you love me.”

“Wha—I—” Rin flushed further at Haru’s reserved audacity. “You say it _first_!”

“Why can’t you say it first?”

“If you think of it, you should start it!” he reasoned through a growing fluster. “Especially for something so important!”

And their stare-down ensued within their embrace.

“I love you.” Haru stated.

“I love you too.”

“Good.”

“Great.”

“Why aren’t you blushing?”

“Why _should_ I be blushing?”

Haru pinched Rin’s cheeks. “It’s cuter when you blush.”

“Don’ tel’ me w’at to do,” he retorted, his words warbled by slim, freshly ungloved fingers. “ _Oi_ , yer fingurs ahr _cold_.”

“Sorry,” his hands slipped to cradle Rin’s jawline. “You want dinner?”

“I want a bath,” Rin huffed, letting Haru bury his fingers deeper into his hair. “Then dinner.”

Haru drew a lock between them, fingering it in interest. “Aren’t you tired?”

“I’ll nap after,” Rin hummed. He watched Haru fiddle with some strands, before sliding his arms beneath Haru’s anorak to touch around his waist.

Haru hummed absently, half-closing his eyes.

“Alright.”

A moment of quiet passed in their embrace. Rin’s eyes followed the contour of Haru’s cheekbone to the redness of his thin, chapped lips.

“…Wanna get in the bath with me?”

“—Yes.”

“Th-That’s kind of a quick response, isn’t it…?” Rin laughed, part nervous and part giddy at Haru’s glittering eyes. “What, you that excited to bathe with me, or something?” he teased, waggling his eyebrows.

Haru tilted his head innocently. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

“ _Urk_ —” Rin clapped over his own mouth and looked away, thinking _shit, he’s cute_. “N-No reason.”

“Besides,” he continued, his hands directing Rin’s gaze back to his own, calm one. “I can do what I’ve been planning once we get in.”

If Rin had been blushing before, his face had exploded now. “E-E-Eh, wh-what do you—you mean you wanna—in the _bath_ you wanna—”

Haru looked pointedly away from Rin’s darting eyes, escaping from the gentle hold to finally move from the front entrance. “…You’ll see soon. I’ll go draw the bath now.”

Rin stood frozen, staring at the spot Haru had whispered to him, before whipping his head around to where Haru had headed off.

_If Haru’s blushing about it, what the fuck do **I** do?!_

* * *

Rin jumped a little in the bath when Haru slid open the door, making the steaming bathwater slosh in the tub. Haru had long taken off his jacket so he was only wearing a sports grey tee, but it was the first time that day that Rin saw any bare skin.

Bare, taut, muscular skin.

“…You…” Rin murmured, before dipping his chin further into the bathwater. “You’ve really been working hard, huh?”

“Yeah,” Haru nodded before bending his arms over his own shoulders, starting to pull off his form-fitting shirt. It bunched at his elbows as he tossed the hair out of his eyes, and Rin furtively studied the subtle ease and tension of the tight sinews of his shoulders, down to his chest, arms and wrists. “…quite tough.”

Rin’s eyebrows screwed together, and he shook his head quickly. “Uh, come again?”

“Training at university is quite tough,” Haru repeated, starting to undo his belt. The buckle at his fingers echoed within the small, steamy bathroom. “The team is a lot bigger, too.”

“Mm?” Rin’s head drooped backward to meet a tile dripping with condensation. Out of the corner of his eye he carefully watched Haru popping the button of his trousers and drawing the zip tooth by tooth. Rin found himself swallowing the saliva collecting in his mouth. “Bigger, huh?”

Rin shut his eyes with a relaxed slowness. Explicit, reserved images flashed at the back of his eyelids — moments where he witnessed so many sides to Haru that were only for him, as sights he’d never seen before.

When he peeled open his eyes, Haru was suddenly eye-level and inches away from his face.

“You keep staring.”

Rin blinked rapidly, realising that Haru was kneeling. “Eh?”

“Not to mention,” Haru continued, his hand wandering to the base of Rin’s skull. “Your expression’s really lewd right now.”

Realising his perversion, Rin felt shame kindling his cheeks.

“Oh. _Oh_ , uh—” a cough rippled in Rin’s throat, his expression panicked while Haru’s fingers gently played at the ends of his soaked hair. “S-Sorry, I shoulda listened instead of—”

“It’s fine,” Haru leaned forward to plant a chaste kiss on his forehead, before drawing away to properly take off his sagging trousers. “I like it when you look at me.”

Rin didn’t have time to feel embarrassed at the bold statement; he looked down to Haru’s lower half with a feeling of weird nostalgia washing over.

“Still with the swimsuit…”

“Don’t worry,” Haru turned around to fish in his trouser pockets, pulling out a few items that Rin couldn’t see. “I’m taking it off in a moment.”

Rin’s forehead met his knees. “Don’t say it like you’re reassuring me…”

The sound of clothes rumpling to the floor rung in his ears. On reflex he turned to look, which made him draw a sharp, shaky breath.

_Fuck, he looks―_

The only times they’d touched were before Rin left for Australia the second time around, when Haru’s body was lean and toned. Even at the airport, Rin noticed that Haru had retained his reserved poise; even out of water, he moved with an unnameable grace.

Now, in the muggy bathroom, every part of Haru was noticeably thicker. His shoulders and chest grew broader with muscle mass, his waist remained slim with a more defined six-pack, and where the deliciously lined V of his hips led down to was―

“Move over a little, Rin.”

He vacantly responded by shuffling forward, the water splashing as he created space for Haru behind him. Rin resolutely looked forward as he felt Haru enter the bath, the water starting to rise as both of them relaxed more and more into the tub.

While Haru leaned back against the bathroom wall, Rin laid on his hard, wide chest. His head tipped back over Haru’s shoulder, his back stuck against the muscly plane of Haru’s torso, and the dip of his rear pressed against a solid girth that had him sighing pleasantly in the hot bath.

He was half-hard. Rin licked his lips, somehow relaxed and aroused in a steaming bath with his chiselled rival and boyfriend.

“Hey, Haru…” he whispered, starting to nose the column of Haru’s neck. “What did you want to do to me?”

He felt Haru’s surprise through the shift of his chest beneath his back, a small tension at his throat. “You…want me to do it now?”

It took all of Rin’s self-control to not lick the slight sweat at Haru’s jawline. Instead, he blew gently along it, and relished Haru’s sweet, bodily shiver as Rin subtly pushed backwards more. “As soon as possible.”

“…Lean forward.”

Rin wordlessly complied, his back starting to curl off of Haru’s frame and forward into the water. Plastic rustled on the side where Haru was reaching over the tub’s lip, and Rin let out a pant of excitement, wondering what the addition of water would feel like as Haru did what he wanted to him.

His imagination slithered off when Haru bent forward, so their skin connected again. Rin bit on his lip from the building anticipation, feeling himself growing harder as Haru brought his hands around,

and clipped a shark barette at his hair.

Everything paused.

Rin looked around at the water, at his own, clipped hair, and turned around. Haru was looking aside with pink cheeks, his lips even smaller with worry.

“Huh?” was what Rin broke the silence with. “What’s this?”

“…I,” Haru started, then stopped with a glance, before starting again. “Wanted to play…”

“Play?”

Haru nodded. “With your hair.”

“…Oh,” Rin blinked through wide eyes. He turned to contemplate the clear bathwater blurred with steam, entirely curious. “That’s what you wanted to do to me?”

“Yeah…”

Rin nodded slowly, his lip in a impressed pout. He peeked over his shoulder to see hair accessories lying in a plastic bag at the foot of the tub. Bobby pins, clips, hairbands and animal barettes laid within, with a darker colour scheme of black and maroon that Rin liked.

That Haru knew he would like.

“ _Pfft_ ―” Rin found himself holding back a snort, his frame shuddering with unreleased giggles. Then he just let out peals of laughter, much to Haru’s quiet dismay.

“I didn’t think you would laugh, exactly…”

Wiping the slight tears at his eyes, Rin turned back to show his uninhibited grin. “H-How―haha―how long’ve you―wanted to do this?”

Haru pouted, squirming a little in his place. “A month.”

Rin sniffed, his laughter starting to subside. “A month?”

“You said you…would cut your hair,” Haru reminded, mumbling. “Over Skype.”

“I decided not to later though, yeah?” Rin said, feeling more amusement and endearment at Haru’s child-like embarrassment by the minute. “You told me not to.”

“I know,” Haru’s eyes cast down, so he was approaching Rin’s teasing eyes again. “But I still wanted to play with it.”

“ _Haruuu_ ~” Rin giggled without reserve, his eyes crinkling with a wide smile. “You like my hair _soo_ much, don’t you?”

“Yeah,” Haru muttered, his hand cupping Rin’s head, so his fingers entangled in the wet tresses. “Your hair’s nice.”

“I’ll bet,” Rin shook his head with a sighing disbelief, still smiling as he laid back on Haru’s shoulder again. “Then, I’ll let you play with my hair on one condition.”

Haru’s eyes sparkled. “What is it?”

“We have sex afterwards.”

“Deal.”

“Awesome,” Rin sat back up promptly, giving Haru free rein with his already accessorised hair. “The hair’s all yours.”

Haru picked up a few more hair accessories, and lined them up on the lip of the tub. “I’ll wash it first, then.”

“Knock yourself out.”

He hummed as Haru spent the time lathering his hair, massaging his scalp with a love and care that Rin was melting into.

“Oh, right…” Rin murmured more to himself, but remembered Haru was listening too, even though he was busy braiding his hair at the back. “Isn’t it Christmas soon?”

“It’s in two weeks,” Haru confirmed, tying off the end of the braid with a thin hairband.

“We should go Christmas shopping later,” Rin turned back, a bright smile on his lips with his hair styled in every which way. “Together, with the others if they’re visiting!”

Haru blinked at his infectious enthusiasm, before his own features turned into a warm smile.

“Yeah.”

**Author's Note:**

> "Haruka likes Rin hair a lot and hence for doesn't wish for him to cut them. It can take place post!anime, when they meet after some time perhaps; Haruka notices Rin's hair has grown and since they couldn't touch each other for a long time – Skype calls aren't always enough – he can't resist the urge to touch them a bit too much. I can also imagine Haru messing with Rin's hair while sitting down at a kotatsu, enjoying himself while doing small ponytails or braids which would piss Rin off.  
> Really, it's all up to the kind writer, all I'm asking here is for Haru to like Rin's hair a lot ~ In short, fluffy and sexy stuff from those two dorks! Possibly a RinHaru, but HaruRin is fine too-- Rinharurin is always good!" — Sawi
> 
>  
> 
> ~~geddit, _lock_ ed in place?~~
> 
>  
> 
> It was fun writing after not being able to for so long :D I hope you guys like this, and have a Merry Christmas! <3


End file.
